NEWS - Not all Smooth Sailing for Beneteau

Europe's biggest yacht builder and leading powerboat maker, Beneteau has been forced to bite the bullet and slash 600 jobs in line with the declining global pleasure-boat market.

Not all Smooth Sailing for Beneteau

The Bénéteau Group has announced its survival plan to combat the global recession, that is, cutting 600 jobs from its workforce.

"With the sharp downturn in our business, down 50% in 2008-2009, what is at stake now is safeguarding the company's competitiveness and ensuring its long-term viability: coming through the crisis and ensuring that Bénéteau, today the world's number one sailboat builder and one of Europe's powerboat market leaders, is able to take part in the future realignment of the global competitive landscape," writes Bruno Cathelinais,Chairman of the Bénéteau Group Management Board, in an open letter to the marine industry.

"Faced with this challenge, we do not have any other choice than to consider adapting our workforce in line with the developments on the market. With everyone mobilized, we believe that it will be possible to save 1,000 jobs out of an estimated overstaffing representing nearly 1,600 positions. The company will uphold its social responsibility and act as a respectful employer in relation to its staff.

"Our fundamentals are healthy. The Bénéteau Group's sound financial structure means that it is in a strong position to withstand the crisis. The sensitive period that we are coming through must not lead us to forget that the company has a number of major assets: its size, the quality of its products, its strong capacity for innovation, recognized in France and internationally, the commitment of its staff, the stability of its management, experienced and responsive, its highly diverse offering, its values, shaped over the generations...

"As we were able to demonstrate during the crisis in the 90s, which the company emerged from stronger, I am confident in our collective ability to secure our future," says Cathelinais.